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All About Love

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Scripture Used to Create “All About Love”

1 Corinthians 12:31 (Greek Text Analysis for 1 Corinthians 12:31)

1 Corinthians 13:1-13 (Greek Text Analysis beginning with 1 Corinthians 13:1)

 

English Bible translation used: Berean Standard Bible

 

But eagerly desire the 1 greater gifts. And now I will show you the 2 most excellent way.

If I speak in the 3 tongues of men and of angels, but have not 4 love, I am only a 5 ringing gong or a 6 clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of 7 prophesy and can 8 fathom all mysteries and all 9 knowledge, and if I have 10 absolute faith so as to 11 move mountains, but have not love, 12 I am nothing. 13 If I give all I possess to the poor and 14 exult in the surrender of my body so that I may boast, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is 15 patient, love is 16 kind. It does not 17 envy, it does not 18 boast, it is not 19 proud. It is not 20 rude, it is not 21 self-seeking, it is not 22 easily angered, it keeps 23 no account of wrongs. Love takes no 24 pleasure in evil, but 25 rejoices in the truth. It 26 bears all things, 27 believes all things, 28 hopes all things, 29 endures all things. 30 Love never fails.

But where there are 31 prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be restrained; where there is knowledge, it will be dismissed. For 32 we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial passes away.

33When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I set aside childish ways. 34 Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

And now these three 35 remain: faith, hope, and love; but the greatest of these is love.

 

NOTES

 

1 greater gifts: The greater gifts are listed throughout 1 Corinthians 12. They include (but are not limited to) apostles, prophets, teachers, miracles, healings, helping, administrating, wisdom, knowledge, faith, distinguishing of spirits, speaking in different languages previously unknown, and the ability to interpret languages previously unknown. In chapter 14, prophesy is elevated even above the other gifts of chapter 12. See Note 7 for more on prophesy. No gift is more important than love, as chapter 13 is making clear to us. Also, no gift makes the recipient of said gift more valuable over another member of Christ’s church (1 Corinthians 12:12-30), as all gifts are given, as Paul says, “for the common good” see 1 Corinthians 12:7. (BACK)

2 most excellent way: The Greek words used here in 1 Corinthians 12:31 are  huperbolé and hodos. They mean “a more surpassing way”, and give the feel of using the best means possible to arrive at your destination point. Paul is saying if you desire these greater gifts (as described in 1 Corinthians 12), here’s the best way to them. (BACK)

3 tongues of men and of angels: The Greek word used for tongues in 1 Corinthians 13:1 is glóssa and it means “language, nation” and it also means the physical organ of the tongue. Here, Paul is saying, “Even if one is the most eloquent orator of Scripture, speaking to both humans and angels”. It should be noted that all of the situations described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (faith, surrender, giving to the poor, etc.) are all proper actions/attitudes that should be exhibited in a Christian’s behavior. What we are learning here is that all of these outward “actions” mean nothing without the love to accompany them. This is an underlined point in the Bible: outward show doesn’t mean a thing when the inside motives are lacking true Godly love. See Matthew 23:23-27 as example. (BACK)

4 love: The Greek word used for love throughout 1 Corinthians 13 is agapé and it means “love”. This type of love is unconditional, has no strings attached, and is self-sacrificing. It is not based on feelings or how you are treated by the recipient of your love. Don’t think of it as how a parent loves a child. That type of love still has some human motivation attached to it. Think of agapé love like this: Your innocent baby has been brutally beaten, spit on, mocked and called every filthy name ever invented, and then murdered in the most painful and humiliating way possible, for everyone to see. Many people laugh about the murder, or simply don’t care that it happened. They even use your baby’s name as a swear word or as a casual jest. But you have compassion, pity, and forgiveness for the perpetrators of these (seemingly) unforgiveable crimes and offenses. You even feed and clothe these people. Not only that, you allow and promote good things to happen in their lives. When bad things happen in their lives (even if they caused their own bad situation), you provide a way through, giving them every chance to lean on you for understanding and comfort. The Bible is very clear, that this love is the basic building block in our relationship to God and to each other (1 John 4:8-21). (BACK)

5 ringing gong: Gongs were simple instruments with percussion pitches. They were usually made of brass, a metal less costly than gold or silver, and hit with a type of mallet. They were used, in a way,  like a drum or to transmit signals.  The Greek word used for gong is chalkos and means “bronze, brass”. The Greek word used for ringing is écheó and it means “to sound, echo”. (BACK)

6 clanging cymbal: The Greek words used for clanging and cymbal in 1 Corinthians 13:1 are alalazó and kumbalon. Cymbals were used as musical instruments in worship or celebration. And, just like today, cymbals were limited in their range or variety of notes. (BACK)

7 prophesy: The Greek word used for prophesy in 1 Corinthians 13:2 is prophéteia and means “the gift of communicating revealed truth of God”. Today, we have the Bible that communicates all of the revealed truth of God, including those events we haven’t seen played out yet, as described in Daniel 7-12 and the Book of Revelation. (BACK)

8 fathom all mysteries: The Greek word used in 1 Corinthians 13:2 for fathom is eidó and means “to understand, perceive” with the feeling of intuition or deeper understanding. The Greek word used for mysteries is mustérion and means “mystery”. In the Bible, a mystery is an unrevealed detail or truth of God, and just to be clear, is not a mystery to God, just to humans. (BACK)

9 knowledge: The Greek word used for knowledge in 1 Corinthians 13:2 is gnósis and it means “to understand or to know”. It can apply to both secular and spiritual understanding. (BACK)

10 absolute faith: The Greek phrase used in 1 Corinthians 13:2 says “all the faith” or “entire faith”, using the Greek words pas (every, all, entire ) and pistis (faith). The faith referred to here means to have confidence and trust in what you have been persuaded to believe in as truth. Faith in Christ is a gift of God, see Ephesians 2:8-9. In our own natural human state, God’s ways, including the idea of needing salvation from sin, are foolishness to us, 1 Corinthians 2:14. (BACK)

11 move mountains: Jesus talks about moving mountains by faith in Matthew 17:20. This can be understood in the context of hyperbole, as even the apostle Paul isn’t recorded as having removed any mountains. However, he is recorded, in Philippians 4:13, as understanding that he can do all things through God who strengthens him. It is to be understood that this is because it is God who can do all things, not man, therefore the glory belongs to God. See Mark 10:27; Ephesians 3:20-21. (BACK)

12 I am nothing: The Greek word for nothing used in 1 Corinthians 13:2-3 is from the word oudeis  and it means “none, nothing”. Oudeis is a complete void and is devoid of any substance. Our English terms sometimes don’t carry the same mental picture that is meant to be conveyed. (BACK)

13 If I give all I possess to the poor: The Greek phrasing for 1 Corinthians 13:3 says “If I may give away all the possessions of me”. The Greek word used for I may give away is psómizó and it means “to feed” with the idea of giving a small piece of food to one in need. Although the word poor is not included in the Greek text, it is implied through the use of psómizó. Jesus once told a rich man to give all he had to the poor and then to follow Him (Matthew 19:21-22; Mark 10:21-22). And, judging by the understanding of the disciples at the Last Supper, giving to the poor was a common action for the Lord’s ministry (John 13:29). The apostles were concerned with those in need as well (Galatians 2:9-10). It is a Christian attribute, to be concerned with the needs of those who don’t have enough. See 1 Timothy 6:17-19 on instructions for those who have an abundance. (BACK)

14 exult in the surrender of my body so that I may boast: 1 Corinthians 13:3. There are many English translations that read “surrender my body to be burned” or to the same effect. The original Greek phrase does not mention burning. The transliteral Greek says “I may deliver up the body of me that I may boast”. It is in the usage of the word deliver that gives us a clue to the sacrifice involved, but not the method used. The Greek word used for deliver is paradidómi and it means “to deliver, betray, abandon, commit”. The word is also used to describe the delivering up of Jesus for crucifixion, as shown in Luke 23:25. The Greek word used for boast is kauchaomai and it means “to glory, boast, exult”.  Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 10:17 (Jeremiah 9:23-24) that the only boasting (using the word kauchaomai) anyone should do is in the Lord. (BACK)

15 patient: 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 now explains just what agapé love really is. The Greek word used for patient in verse 4 is makrothumeó and it means “patient, long-suffering”. This patience does not retaliate even when someone is trying to be provoking, and will put up with long-term hardship without anger. (BACK)

16 kind: 1 Corinthians 13:4. The Greek word used for kind is chrésteuomai and it means “kind, useful, benevolent to others”. This kindness does not expect anything in return, including a “thank you”, for its benevolence. It is gentle and service-minded, wanting to be useful in doing good for other people. (BACK)

17 envy: 1 Corinthians 13:4. The Greek word used for envy is zéloó and it means “to be eager to possess”. This can be a good thing, as in eager to possess the right attitudes and mind-set in Christ. But in the negative shade, envy means wanting/coveting what someone else has. There’s even a commandment against envy (Exodus 20:17). (BACK)

18 boast: 1 Corinthians 13:4. The Greek word used for boast is perpereuomai and it means “boast, brag, arrogant”.  Pride is the base element in perpereuomai .  See Note 14 regarding proper boasting. (BACK)

19 proud: 1 Corinthians 13:4. The Greek word used for proud is phusioó and it means “puffed up, arrogant, pride”. See the following verses for a sampling on pride: Proverbs 16:18; Romans 12:16; James 4:6. (BACK)

20 rude: 1 Corinthians 13:5. Many English translations use the word rude here. The Greek word used here is aschémoneó and it means “behave improperly, act unbecomingly”. It can encompass rudeness, but it means to behave inappropriately or in shameful manner. (BACK)

21 self-seeking: 1 Corinthians 13:5. The Greek word used for seek is zéteó (seek, desire, search for). It gives the feeling of intense searching, with determination to get what it wanted. This is admirable when seeking the things of God. It is the self part or selfish part that is a problem here. Jesus said we should first seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness and He will take care of our actual needs. See Matthew 6:25-34 on this lesson. (BACK)

22 easily angered: 1 Corinthians 13:5. The Greek word used for easily angered is paroxunó and it means “to stir up, provoke, irritate, anger”. For some passages regarding anger, see Psalm 37:8; Proverbs 14:29;  Proverbs 15:1; Galatians 5:19-20; Ephesians 4:31; James 1:19-20. (BACK)

23 no account of wrongs: 1 Corinthians 13:5. The Greek word used here for account is logizomai and it means “charge with, count, reckon”. It has legal and financial applications. The Greek word used for wrongs is kakos and it means “bad, evil”. It has a wide application and covers anything considered harmful. (BACK)

24 pleasure in evil: 1 Corinthians 13:6. The Greek word used for pleasure is chairó and it means “rejoice, glad”. It gives the feel of an internal joy and delight with a celebratory mood. The Greek word used for evil is adikia and it means “injustice, wrongdoing”. It would be difficult to imagine anyone taking joy in bad things happening to so-called good people, but what about a person who is perceived to be “getting what they deserve”?  This actually plays around the border of revenge. We should never take joy in anyone’s misfortune, even if they caused it themselves and even if it seems they deserve it. We are instructed to cry with those who cry, as well as to laugh with those who are joyful (Romans 12:15-21). For a few verses on revenge, see Proverbs 20:22; Matthew 5:38-39; 1 Thessalonians 5:15. (BACK)

25 rejoices in the truth: 1 Corinthians 13:6. The Greek word used for rejoices is sugchairó and it means “to be glad with”. This is not a singular or personal gladness—it is shared with others. The Greek word used for truth is alétheia and it means “truth”. This word encompasses what is reality, and alongside that, what is moral and trustworthy. (BACK)

26 bears all things: 1 Corinthians 13:7. The Greek word used for bears is stegó and it means “to cover, endure, conceal”. It gives the feeling of protecting with a covering or safety in covering. (BACK)

27 believes all things: 1 Corinthians 13:7. The Greek word used for believes is pisteuó and means “faith, believe, to place trust in”. It is the same word used for the God-gifted faith that Christians have in Christ. This kind of faith is filled with trust and confidence. It is important to understand that this is not a blind faith nor is love blind, as many like to think. There are people who are not trustworthy and we have been instructed to be wise (Matthew 10:16). Does this mean that we don’t love those we can’t trust? Of course not, we are to love everyone, even enemies (Luke 6:32-35). But 0ur faith and trust is always in God, not in people. God will be our provision, our protection, and our salvation (see Proverbs 3:5-6, 25-26). (BACK)

28 hopes all things: 1 Corinthians 13:7. The Greek word used for hope is elpizó and it means to “to hope, trust, expect”. This kind of hope is not wishful thinking with positive thoughts that something might happen. This hope is filled with confidence and assurance; this kind of hope knows that what has been promised will be fulfilled. It is the believer’s hope that is held in Jesus Christ. (BACK)

29 endures all things: 1 Corinthians 13:7. The Greek word used for endures is hupomenó and it means “endure, persevere”. This endurance’s power to hold one steady and faithful isn’t shaken by adversity, trials, disappointment, pain or horrors. (BACK)

30 Love never fails: 1 Corinthians 13:8. If you have to sum up 1 Corinthians 13 into three words, this is it: Love never fails. The Greek word used for fails is piptó and it means “to fall”. The word can be used in a wide ranging sense from metaphoric to literal. It’s overall significance is falling equals decline, and therefore, failure or ruin. Love can never be ruined. (BACK)

31 prophecies…cease… tongues…restrained… knowledge… dismissed: Eventually, all prophecy will be fulfilled, all the language will be unnecessary, all the knowledge will be known. This is what the Christian is waiting for, when all of these temporal things are done with. See Revelation 21 and 22. (BACK)

32 we know in part…prophesy in part…perfect comes… partial passes away: God knows everything, but we don’t. Even our Bible is only what God wants us to know; it is by no means a full explanation, as there are things we can’t possibly understand (Romans 11:33-36). We do, however, have everything we need to make our decision to trust the Lord and to obey Him (Romans 1:20). (BACK)

33 When I was a child…I set aside childish ways: Children are not generally deep or forward thinkers. Their decisions are usually made with focus on self and based on immediate need or situation. Children rarely, if ever, have long-term ramifications in mind when choosing a path forward. As adults, we (should) have a much more advanced understanding. We make important decisions based on outcomes that will possibly have short-term discomfort, but have long-term and lasting benefit. This analogy of maturity can also be equated to “before- Christ thinking” and “with-Christ thinking” or “how I used to think before I knew Jesus” and “how I think now that I know and trust Jesus”. (BACK)

34 Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror: Mirrors were made of polished metal back in the days of Paul, and they weren’t very detailed in the reflection. They also tarnished and were usually small, not giving a full head-to-toe reflection. To read about the interesting find of an ancient mirror in a Jerusalem grave, click here. (BACK)

35 but the greatest of these is love: Jesus was once asked by the scribes which of the commandments was the greatest. Jesus answers in the definite that loving God with all that you are is the first greatest and loving your neighbor is the second greatest. Note that He gives both the greatest and the second greatest, even though they asked for only the first one. This is because of His answer in Matthew 22:40 and also because of  1 John 4:20-21. See Leviticus 19:18;  Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:35-40; Mark 12:28-31; Galatians 5:14. (BACK)

The Resurrection of Jesus: Part One

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Scripture Used to Create “The Resurrection of Jesus” Splice Series

 

Matthew 28:1-20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Matthew 28:1)

Mark 16:1-20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Mark 16:1)

Luke 24:1-53 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Luke 24:1)

John 20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with John 20:1)

John 21 (Greek Text Analysis starting with John 21:1)

Acts 1:1-14 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Acts 1:1)

 

Need to catch up first? To read the Splice “The Burial of Jesus”, click here.

 

Acts 17:31
“…because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

 

THE SPLICE

 

Now on the 1 first day of the week, when the Sabbath was over, while it was still 2 dark, as it began to dawn before sunrise, Mary Magdalene and 3 Mary the mother of James, and 4 Salome5 bought spices, and brought the spices that 6 they had prepared to the tomb, so that they might come and anoint Jesus and they also wanted to look at the grave. Before the women arrived at the tomb, 7 a severe earthquake had occurred, because an angel of the Lord descended from Heaven and came and rolled away the stone. He then sat down upon the stone. And8 this angel’s appearance was like lightning, and his clothing was as white as pure snow. 9 The guards were so afraid of the angel, that they were shaking and then they became like they were dead men.

As the women were walking to the tomb, 10 they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” When they got there, they were looking up towards it, and they saw that the stone had already been rolled away and taken away from the tomb, although the stone was extremely large. Entering the tomb, the women did not find the body of the Lord Jesus and were perplexed about this. Two men suddenly stood near them, with one wearing a white robe, and both in 11 dazzling clothing; one of them, a  12 young man wearing the white robe, then was sitting at the right. The women were amazed; and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how 13 He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.” And the women remembered Jesus’s words. The specific words of the angel sitting to the right in the white robe were, “Do not be amazed; Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. But go quickly, tell His disciples and Peter that He has risen from the dead and behold, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee; there you will see Him, 14 just as He told you. Behold, I have told you.”’ Then, Mary Magdalene, with the other women, ran and returned from the tomb to the place where the disciples were gathered and came to Simon Peter and to the 15 other disciple whom Jesus loved, and reported all these things to the 16 eleven and to all the rest. And Mary Magdalene said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” The women told everyone in attendance that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. Now the women were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also 17 the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles. But these words appeared to the disciples and others as nonsense, and they would not believe the women. But Peter got up and with 18 the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand 19 the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So the disciples went away again to their 20 own homes, Peter marveling at what had happened. It was after this that Jesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene (she was the first one He appeared to), from whom He had cast out seven demons. Here’s how His appearance to Mary happened: After Peter and John had left, Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping (we do not know where the other women were at the time); and as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”  When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and 21 I will take Him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’” At some point after this, the other women joined Mary, and together, they left the tomb quickly, trembling and fleeing in fear, astonishment and great joy and 22 they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid to tell anyone. And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.” Mary Magdalene went and reported this message. She announced to the disciples, the people who had been with Jesus during His ministry, while they were all mourning and weeping, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her. When they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it.

Now while the women had run to tell everyone that Jesus was risen and seen by them, some of the guard that had been at the tomb came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, and said, “you are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ And if this should come to the governor’s ears, 23 we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.” And the guards took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was widely spread among the Jews for at least 50 years (and even today, 2000 years later, it is still spread around as a “theory” by those who claim that the Gospel is false or that God does not exist).

When Jesus had died on the cross, the earth had shook and the rocks were split, as well as some tombs were opened. And many of His saints that had died had been buried in these opened tombs. Now that Jesus had been resurrected, those saints who had fallen asleep were also raised and were coming of out the tombs after His resurrection. 24 These raised saints went into Jerusalem, the holy city, and appeared to many.

 

Want to continue reading? To read the Splice “The Resurrection of Jesus: Part Two”, click here.

 

NOTES

 

1 first day of the week: The first day of the week is Sunday.  This particular Sunday would be Nissan/Abib 16. Both Nissan (Nisan) and Abib are correct names for the first month of the year. (Back)

2 dark, as it began to dawn before sunrise: Dawn and sunrise are not the same things. Sunrises happen at an exact moment, such as 5:42am. Dawn happens before sunrise and is a gradual event, taking around 15-20 minutes, ending at the moment of sunrise. April sunrises in Jerusalem, Israel occur at approximately 6:30am, give or take a few minutes. Since it is still dark and at early dawn when the women go to the tomb, it is fair to think that the ladies were setting out at around 6am, but we cannot know that for certain. These surmises on the timing assume that April sunrises were exactly the same 2,000 years ago as they are today. (Back)

3 Mary the mother of James: From Mark 16:1. She is possibly the same Mary who was the mother of both James the Less and Joseph/Joses (Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40), but the Bible doesn’t say that. (Back)

4 Salome: Some Bible scholars insist that Salome is Zebedee’s wife (Zebedee is the father of James and John, the apostles, see Matthew 4:21; Mark 10:35). The Bible never mentions any children/husband for Salome. Salome is only mentioned twice in the Bible, both times in Mark (see Mark 15:40 and 16:1). Zebedee’s wife’s name is never mentioned, nor is John and James the disciples’ mother’s name given to us. The mother of John and James is also only mentioned twice in the Bible, both times in Matthew (see Matthew 2o:20-21 and 27:56). Salome could very well be Zebedee’s wife.  It’s also possible that Salome is not Zebedee’s wife. We have no idea who Zebedee’s wife is and to insist that Salome is Zebedee’s wife is making the Bible say something that it doesn’t say. It is incredibly important that we do not “help” God by filling in what we consider to be blank spaces or to take a “logical jump” in the Bible and state it as truth. It’s ok to add our logical jumps for pondering’s sake, as long as we are clear that we are giving our own opinion and not stating something found in the Bible. Besides, our logical jumps are no match for God (Isaiah 55:8-9). (Back)

5 bought spices, and brought the spices: Mark 16:1 tells us that Mary Mags, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices after the Sabbath. Luke 23:55-56 tells us that the women who had come with Jesus out of Galilee returned (presumably to where they were staying for the Passover week) and prepared spices and perfumes and on the Sabbath they rested. The simplest explanation is that the women had prepared some spices on Friday, and then for reasons unstated, bought some spices after the Sabbath ended. (Back)

6 they: The women already mentioned, plus Joanna and some other unnamed women, because of Luke 24:10.  (Back)

7 severe earthquake had occurred:  The earthquake happened before the ladies got to the tomb because of Luke 24:2.  It’s possible that the angel removed the stone in accordance with the earthquake (Matthew 28:2) as soon as Jesus was resurrected, but the Bible does not mention this as a truth. I believe the removal of the stone was not done to let Jesus out of the tomb because I believe that Jesus was instantly resurrected and vanished from the tomb, like He vanished from sight in Luke 24:31 or how He instantly appeared as in John 20:19, 26 or as John says, “revealed” Himself (Greek word phaneroó) in 21:1, 14. I think that the reason that the tomb stone was removed from the entrance of the tomb was to show that Jesus was no longer there in the tomb; to let people come in and see that He was risen. No Roman seal or Roman guards’ lies would put a stop to that (Matthew 27:62-66, 28:11-15). (Back)

8 his appearance: From Matthew 28:3. The Greek word used for appearance is idea meaning “form, countenance, appearance”. It is from the Greek word eido meaning “to perceive”. The Greek word used for lightning is astrapé and means “a flash of lightning, brightness, luster”. The Greek word for white is leukos and means “white, bright, brilliant”. I believe that the brightness and lightning, and the brilliant white are supernatural-looking, like Jesus’s appearance as described in Revelation 1:14-15. The writers of the books of the Bible only have human languages to describe things, but I believe these supernatural sights are supernatural indeed, and do not consist of “normal” lightning or “normal” whiteness, because of Mark 9:3. (Back)

9 The guards: The guards that were present at the tomb on Sunday are only mentioned in Matthew 28:4 and in Matthew 28:11-15. They could be a completely different set of guards from the ones mentioned in Matthew 27:65-66, but we don’t know. We don’t know when the guards stopped being like “dead men”. We know that they went into the city of Jerusalem to report to the chief priests while the women were on their way back to the disciples (Matthew 28:11). We don’t know if the women had any interactions with the guards. We do know that the women were not at the tomb when the angel rolled away the stone in front of the guards because of Mark 16:4. (Back)

10 They were saying to one another: I believe they held this conversation during the walk to the tomb somewhere along the line because of Mark 16:4. (Back)

11 dazzling clothing: Luke uses this descriptor in Luke 24:4. It is the same Greek word that Matthew uses in Matthew 28:3, astraptó, and means “to lighten, to flash, I flash (with lightning, like lightning), am lustrous”. (Back)

12 young man wearing the white robe: This is probably the same angel that removed the stone from the tomb, as Matthew 28:2-7 tells it. Matthew 28:2-7, Mark 16:5-7, Luke 24:4-7, and John 20:12-13 tell us about the angels and their conversations with the women. The Greek word used here for robe is stolé and the word is used to describe a long, flowing robe that was used for the wealthy/elite classes. The angels were dressed rather nicely.  (Back)

13 He spoke to you: Jesus told His disciples many times that He was to be crucified, see Matthew 10:38, 16:21; 20:17-19, 26:1-2, 12 and Mark 10:32-34. (Back)

14 just as He told you: Jesus tells the disciples that He will go ahead of them to Galilee when He has been resurrected in Matthew 26:32. (Back)

15 other disciple whom Jesus loved: This would be John, the Gospel writer, as well as the writer of 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Revelation. We know that the “disciple whom Jesus loved” is John because he is introduced as this disciple in John 21:24 after the conversation and then rumor of John 21:20-23. (Back)

16 eleven and to all the rest: From Luke 24:9. It is not clear whom “all the rest” is. We know that the eleven had other people with them because of Luke 24:33, however the wording is different for the two verses. Luke 24:9 says “…to all the rest” in the Greek, and Luke 24:33 says “…those with them”. There is a difference and it does matter. “All the rest” could mean that the women not only told the disciples at the place where they were staying, but that they also went to other believers’ homes/saw them on the street and told them the news. It isn’t even clear that the eleven were all staying in the same place. It seems they were gathering together some of the time at the very least, because of Mark 16:10 and Luke 24:33.
In John 20:10, the transliteral Greek says this: “Went away therefore again to their the disciples.” The Greek word for their is hautou and means “her own, his own, their own, themselves, they”. It could mean that the disciples all returned back to the place where they were all staying together, or it could mean that they returned to different places to stay. (Back)

17 the other women: Luke 24:10 says that there were “other women” there with Mary Mags: Mary the mother of James, and Joanna. Joanna (if this is the same person; it seems very likely) is mentioned in Luke 8:3 as being the wife of Herod’s steward. One of the other women that could have gone with to tell the disciples could be Salome, who was there at the start of the trip to the tomb (Mark 16:1). It could also be “the other Mary” (we don’t know which “Mary” Matthew is referring to in Matthew 28:1).  In short, we don’t really know how many women ran back to tell the group about Jesus’s “missing” body. (Back)

18 the other disciple: John is the other disciple, because of John 20:2. It is mentioned in John 20:3 that Peter is running with “the other disciple”. (Back)

19 the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead: Jesus told the disciples many times that He would be killed and then raised on the third day, see Note 13. The Old Testament Scripture reference that describes that Jesus would have to die could have been from Isaiah 53. (Back)

20 own homes: Not back to Galilee, but to where the disciples were staying for the Sabbath/Passover. Because of Luke 24:33, and John 20:19, they were meeting together for at least part of the time, possibly in the Jerusalem upper room from Thursday (see Matthew 26:17-19, Mark 14:13-16,Luke 22:7-13) because it was large and would hold many people (Mark 14:15).  Where they were actually staying and sleeping is debatable. (Back)

21 I will take Him away: I’m not sure how strong women were back in those days, but how does Mary plan to drag/carry a body of literal dead weight back to a tomb? In her grief, she doesn’t seem to care about that. The good news (for us all) is she wouldn’t have to figure it out. (Back)

22 they said nothing to anyone: From Mark 16:8. This phrasing is a little ambiguous. It could mean that they had planned on not saying anything to anyone, including the disciples, and then changed their minds when they met Jesus on the road or it could mean that they told no one that they saw on the road on their way back to the disciples. We do know that the women did tell the disciples, because Mark says so himself in Mark 16:10. (Back)

23 we will win him over and keep you out of trouble: These chief priests had already proven that they could get Pontius Pilate to do whatever they wanted, with enough pressure (see Matthew 27:20-24), but still, the guards are taking a large risk in spreading around a report that they fell asleep on the job. (Back)

24 These raised saints: This part of the account of events surrounding Jesus’s resurrection was told in Matthew 27:51-53. (Back)